The invention relates to a method and to an implementation software product for visually indicating the amount of characters, which can be still entered into an edit field of an electronic device, and to an electronic device having such functionality.
Usually, when entering data in an edit field of an electronic device, such as in an alphanumeric field of a mobile phone for example, there is often no indication for the user how many characters are still remaining for entering before the edit field is filled up and/or the amount entered characters that can be processed all at once in a subsequent common processing step is reached.
The only known solutions are based on a numerical indication, such as displaying the number of already typed characters or the number of remaining characters. However, one of the main problems with regard to such numerical indications is, that a user of the electronic device usually has difficulties in using these indications, since users normally do not think in terms of “characters” when they are writing a text, especially when writing a longer text.
Accordingly, a main object of the invention is, to provide a new and improved indication of the amount of remaining capacity for entering data in an edit field of an electronic device.
Accordingly the invention proposes a method for indicating the amount of data, in particular of characters, which can be entered in an edit field of an electronic device merely allowing a predefined amount of entered data for a common subsequent processing, by graphically visualizing the available capacity of the edit field.
Thus, in particular by using an electronic device having an edit field, means for entering data, preferably characters, into the edit field and means for processing a predefined maximal number of entered data all at once, wherein the device comprises a graphical element associated to the edit field for graphically visualizing the capacity available for entering data in the edit field and/or by using an implementation software product adapted to perform the inventive method, especially implemented within the afore stated device, a user is much more supported when writing a text, since he can evaluate from such kind of indication information how much empty space he has still available to express what he wants.
Preferably, the graphical indication is achieved by a graphical element associated to the edit field with its look changeable in functional dependency to the available space or capacity.
For the practice it is particularly proposed to divide the graphical element into two areas wherein the percentage each of the two areas is changed in functional dependency to the used capacity or to the still remaining capacity.
Additionally or as an alternative, the graphical element may be divided in several sub-portions, each of which is representing a predefined amount of capacity, so that for every amount of capacity already used one of these sub-portions is visually displayed, filled up or deleted.
According to a very preferred embodiment it is further proposed to change the look of a text cursor proportional to the number of remaining characters which can be still entered, since the attention of the user normally is focused already on the text cursor while he is writing the text.
Even the invention is preferably conceived for mobile phones, the invention can be similarly used in any electronic device where the user is prompt to enter a text, especially long texts, to paint pictures and/or to enter other data.
The invention is further proposing an implementation software product designed to perform or at least to support the inventive approach.